New Northampton coffee and sandwich shop a sell out for first three days open

A new Northampton coffee and sandwich shop has opened, after the success of the grazing tables and boxes which kickstarted the business.

Spread opened on January 4 in Adnitt Road, Abington, less than three years after the business was founded by 29-year-old Amy Adams.

Amy had created a grazing table for her daughter’s third birthday in May 2019, which saw a variety of foods placed decoratively on the table for guests to enjoy, and this sparked her passion to become more creative with catering.

Many of the guests asked Amy who she hired to create the grazing table and she then started to produce them for friends and family as a hobby during her maternity leave.

As the hobby gained momentum and the time came for Amy to return to her job part-time in September 2019, she never returned and took Spread on full-time.

Talking about opening the shop less than three years on from starting the business, Amy said: “It’s crazy and doesn’t feel real. It’s as if we’re playing shops.

“We’ve had an amazing response and sold out on the first three days. The first Monday we were open (January 9), we were left with only three sandwiches.

“The neighbours nearby are buzzing and those who work from home told us they’ve been waiting for a place like this to appear.”

Spread’s Instagram page has amassed more than 15,000 followers and Amy says a good reputation has been created by having a large following.

Most people hear about the business through Instagram, as Amy consistently posts about the grazing tables and boxes she does for personal and corporate events.

“When you have a large social media following, people see you as established,” she said. “I’ve kept up with it from the beginning and it has created a level of trust between the business and my customers.”

The business owner knew Abington was the only place she wanted to introduce her new specialty sandwich menu, on-the-go grazing concept and organic coffee, as she is from the area.

Amy had been eyeing up the building she is in now, which was previously a fancy dress shop. The landlord was happy for it to remain as a shop as it once was – rather than being converted into flats which was the original plan.

Spread took over the building in September 2022 and opened four months later.

So far, the ‘flats’ – sandwiches made in a round loaf of bread and cut into quarters – have been the customer favourite as visitors have not seen anything like it before.

Amy soon hopes to collaborate with two nearby businesses in Abington, Hample Hampers and Nova Aesthetics & Beauty.

Though Spread’s focus is currently finding its feet now it is open to the public, Amy is keen to host collaborative events with the two businesses – including gifting events where visitors will have the chance to purchase from all three in one place at one time.

To find out more, you can visit Spread’s Instagram page here.